Being a university student sometimes feels like I’m floating in the midst of a realm surrounded by all my dreams and ambitions; each one alive and calling out to me. But there’s a force that keeps me yearning, never to reach them. It’s week 5 of the trimester, with seven assignments due and 50-page articles to read, and I sit there in front of a computer screen contemplating my existence.
It’s that time of the trimester when I just think to myself; ‘what the hell am I doing? Is this degree even going to get me a job?’. As each week drags, the lack of progress in life starts to dawn on me. The only thing I’m getting good at is drinking an increasing amount of coffee in a short time. ‘These assignments will not benefit me in any way, I’m going to forget 90% of the things I studied for that exam, and I don’t understand a single word from this pointless article’, I constantly think.
But having graduated from my bachelors degree, and now doing my honours degree, I’ve come to learn a few things that keep me hanging in there. Everyone is different, and there are many reasons why some of us continue studying our degree, choose to study something else half way into our degree, decide to take a year off, or just completely drop out of school. That is why I’m writing this article; in the hope that the person reading this will evaluate their life, choose to continue studying , and work towards their end goal. The idea of dropping out of university or choosing another degree to study has crossed my mind too many times, only because I was bored and felt like I was not accomplishing anything.
So, what is it that kept me going?
I had to continuously remind myself why I chose this degree. What do I want to get out of it? What is my ultimate goal? Once I established my long-term goal I spoke to university advisors, counsellors, family and friends, to make sure that my degree would take me on that path. Then I realised it was important that…
I stopped thinking about the future. They say ‘yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift, that’s why it’s called the present’. Constantly thinking of my end goal after university made me feel like I was going nowhere with my studies. My impatience grew, and all I wanted was for time to fly so that I could reach that goal. So, every time my mind wandered off in that direction, I had to call it back and tell myself that things will happen in their own time, in their own way, and I should just focus on what I’m doing now. I distracted myself from the future by…
Focusing on other aspects of my life. Instead of being fixated on my studies and my end goal, I challenged myself in other ways. One of my goals was to go to the gym at least 3 times a week. Other goals included increasing my flexibility, doing hard yoga poses like the crow pose, and balancing on one leg for longer than 30 seconds. In doing this, I accomplished something almost every week. I was able to touch my toes with straight legs, hold the crow pose for 5 seconds, and balance on one leg for 45 seconds. They may seem like small achievements, but they made me feel good, and gave me the motivation to work harder in everything else I do. In saying that, to focus on other aspects of my life while also doing well in my studies…
I had to exercise balance. I set up my week so that Monday to Friday was dedicated to work, and the weekend was my break from anything that remotely involved any form of thinking. During the week, I woke up as early as possible, had a gym or yoga session for an hour, made myself a big healthy breakfast, and went to uni. From 8 am to 5:30 pm, I was devoted to work, and 6 pm was when I would unwind, catch up on T.V shows, read a book, listen to music, and be surrounded by family. Once it hit Saturday, I’d turn off my alarm, have cake for breakfast, and sit in my pyjamas all day. I focused on the moment instead of thinking of what I had to do next, and it was amidst this crazy schedule when I would accomplish the things I mentioned above. But that’s not the only thing that kept me going. I also…
Believed in myself. Nothing is worse than thinking you’re not good enough, or that you’re your going to fail, or that you will never achieve any goal. If I wanted something, I worked for it; whether that be trying to hold the crow pose for 5 seconds, or getting through week 5 of the trimester. Believing in myself meant that I never failed – I learned from every downfall.
So, as I am floating in the realm of dreams and ambitions, I fight the force holding me back with the strength of determination and the resilience of a confident spirit, and try to slow down on the coffee.
Image Credit: Pixabay
– Lujayn
